Getting tanked-up
SUZUKI GSX-8S 7457 MILES Dan digs into the truth behind the 8S’ pessimistic fuel gauge
I love the real-world performance of the Suzuki GSX-8S. I love its comfort, its admirable ability to fend off the aggressive winter grit, and the way it makes me feel. I’ll be very sad to see it go.
However, one thing I have noticed over our time together is how eager the fuel gauge is to tell me I’m running out of juice – sometimes forcing me into a petrol stations, only to find over three litres still sloshing around in the 14-litre tank.
Even with a full Akrapovič exhaust system in place during the summer months, the 8S delivered a tested 63.5mpg during normal riding – enough for a theoretical (and highly respectable) 195.4 miles from a single tank.
However, the TFT dash often tells me it’s time to fill up much earlier than that, regularly dropping onto the second to lowest bar on the fuel gauge surprisingly early, with far more range still available than the pessimistic readout would suggest.
This has become quite a predictable pattern – especially on my commute where I fill up at the same places repeatedly – and while I’d normally feel a pang of panic on a bike when things reach this end of the dial, I know I’ve got plenty of wiggle room before needing to stop.
Don’t get me wrong, I’d much rather it was cautious than deceptively optimistic, but I was keen to know just how much petrol is actually left when the predicted range reaches zero.
To do this, I needed to run the bike to zero miles on the dash before darting into a petrol station to see how much I could squeeze back in. As someone who would rather stop early and play it safe, this was unfamiliar territory and not something my nerves would recommend making a habit of!
With the now flashing gauge dropping into single figures, I began riding a loop around my village – taking in a mixture of 30mph town tarmac and open 60mph country lanes until the decreasing numbers were replaced with three dashes and – supposedly – nothing left in the tank.
Even if I had run out of fuel there and then, it would’ve only ever been a 10-minute walk to fetch a jerry can, but I still didn’t fancy the walk of petroleum shame.
Pulling up to the pumps, the bike was able to swallow 12.93 litres – even when upright and off the sidestand. Using the mpg figure calculated earlier in the year, and presuming an accurate 14-litre tank capacity, this would leave a theoretical 14.93 miles until I had actually run out of gas.
So, not a great deal, but enough to know there’s still some hope of salvation once the gauge tells you all hope is lost. Still, I won’t be doing it again – not intentionally, anyway.
LIKES
Clear, concise dash
DISLIKES
Range indicator not always accurate